It's a long road to another title for Academy Park

by Jon Campbell, Delaware County Times

Posted on November 28, 2007

John Basile thought his team deserved a treat, a trip for that matter. Academy Park was deserving because of its hard work, its dedication to the sport of wrestling — and of course, for finishing last season as tri-champions of the Del Val League.

So in the offseason, Basile scoured the internet for a place to take his team to wrestle this season. And after a while, he stumbled upon a winner. He decided the Knights would travel to hit the mats in the wrestling hotbed of ... South Carolina?

That's right. The Knights, along with the Avon Grove Red Devils, will hop on a bus Dec. 6 and head south for two days of wrestling at West Oak High School (S.C.), located 40 miles north of Atlanta.

The Red Devils figured into the mix after Basile spoke with the coach from West Oak and was told another team might be needed to keep the number of teams participating in the two-day dual event even. So Basile talked to his friend Frank McHugh, the coach at Avon Grove, who promptly decided to join the Knights in their journey south. Once there, each team will wrestle nine matches over the course of Friday and Saturday.

"We're going into this completely blind," said Basile, in his 16th year on the side of the mats at A.P. "I thought, for the kids who are coming back from last season, you would like to reward them every way you can. It will be a great experience. And I have looked on the internet and some of these teams down there are tough. And hopefully it can be a point of departure for team momentum this year."

Many of the Knights who will hit the mat in South Carolina were part of the team that captured a share of the league title last year. For this reason, they are among the favorites to win the title in 2007-08.

Leading the way should be senior Ian Ortiz (112), sophomore Fela Sankofa (130), senior Rayon Campbell (152) and senior Eric Steidler (171).

All four wrestlers were district qualifiers a year ago, with Steidler advancing to the Southeast Regional Tournament on his way to earning All-Delco honors.

And while Basile knows Steidler is still a bit raw, the coach is expecting big things from his 171-pounder.

"I know what I want to get out of Eric," Basile said. "He should have a fine year. He has the right attitude. And he realizes that he is not as pure of a wrestler as some kids, but he is strong and in great shape."

At Chichester , coach Jim Beletti will march a load of underclassmen out onto the mats. Chris Atkins (135) should be the team's most consistent point producer and is one of the few Eagles' seniors.

One of the underclassmen expected to contribute is junior Jim Neeson (112). Also joining the Eagles this year is Turhan Solis. He will battle with Neeson at 112 after making the awkward transfer from Sun Valley to rival Chichester. And returning to help the Eagles in the wrestling room this winter are former Chichester standouts Sonny Phillip and Marty Scarpato.

At Glen Mills, it should be a familiar story for the Battlin' Bulls, who primarily will have all new faces.

First-year coach Carl Barr only will have senior Zach Collins (285) as a returning starter from last year's team that won a third of the league title. In 2006-07, Collins came on strong late and ended his season in the Southeast Regional tourney.

Sophomore Steffan Edwards (125) and junior Dustyn Grogan should be regular contributors this winter.

At Interboro , coach Dan Tobin's squad should be top heavy to say the least. Returning for the Bucs is sophomore All-Delco and state qualifier Vince Knowles (119), as well as junior regional qualifier T.J. Harper (125) and fellow junior regional qualifier Dave Gillen (160). However, Gillen is questionable for the season because of a knee injury.

Senior district qualifier Dan Decker (112) and junior Zac Radico (152) also should be solid. Otherwise, the Bucs are very inexperienced.

At Penn Wood , coach Dan Madonna again will deal with low numbers and inexperience. However, Madonna thinks this is a year the Patriots could make a little noise in the league also advance some kids out of sectionals.

Seniors Ugo Opara (119) and Andrew Sorgi (160/171) were solid performers last season and should be tough on the mat again in 2007-08. Sophomore Rich Lion (160/171) is a youngster who could have a break out winter.

The Sun Valley Vanguards were the third team that earned a share of the league title last year. And considering that coach Damon Kuzemka lost seven starters from that squad, another title share will be tough to come by.

Senior Adam Porter (171) and junior Josh Marquard (152/160) should be the team's top grapplers, while junior Sean Simon (152/160) and sophomore Dan Stover (125) will need to support their teammates with as many points as possible.

[ return to previous page ]